'All I Need to Know' opens March 14 Burt Wood play is based on Robert Fulghum's best-selling book

Friday

Feb 28, 2014 at 12:01 AMFeb 28, 2014 at 1:22 PM

MIDDLEBORO — A cast of adults and students is in rehearsal at The Burt Wood School of Performing Arts for the upcoming production of "All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten". The play is based on a book of short essays by American minister and author Robert Fulghum. The book was first published in 1988.

MIDDLEBORO — A cast of adults and students is in rehearsal at The Burt Wood School of Performing Arts for the upcoming production of "All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten". The play is based on a book of short essays by American minister and author Robert Fulghum. The book was first published in 1988.

The title of the book is taken from the first essay in the volume, in which Mr. Fulghum lists lessons normally learned in American kindergarten classrooms and explains how the world would be improved if adults adhered to the same basic rules as children, i.e. sharing, being kind to one another, cleaning up after themselves, and living "a balanced life" of work, play, and learning.

The book contains 50 short essays, ranging in length from approximately 200 to approximately 1,000 words, which are ruminations on topics ranging from surprises, holidays, childhood, death, and the lives of interesting people including Mother Teresa. In his introduction, Mr. Fulghum describes these as having been "written over many years and addressed to friends, family, a religious community, and myself, with no thought of publication in book form." Over nearly two decades, the title essay, "All I Really Need To Know I Learned in Kindergarten" has spawned countless parodies involving television shows, movies, books, and other phenomena.

This adaptation of the play was written by Ernest Zulia and obtained through Dramatic Publishing. Since fourth grade, Ernest Zulia has been concocting theatre pieces and directing productions for audiences from his backyard, to major regional theatres around the United States, to international stages in Asia and Europe. His adaptation of "All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten" is followed by the sequel "Uh-Oh, Here Comes Christmas." Both pieces were the product of a joyful collaboration with Robert Fulghum and composer David Caldwell.

Directed by Jared Craig and produced by Lorna Brunelle, "All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten" will open on Friday, March 14 at 7 p.m. at The Alley Theatre and will also run on Saturday, March 15 at 7 p.m., Sunday, March 16 at 2 p.m., Friday, March 21at 7 p.m. and Saturday, March 22 at 7 p.m.